Shirts and Cars and Other Things
by Akorn
Summary: April Cleveland came to know Dean Winchester in a situation very similar to many others: she was pressed into a corner of a deserted alleyway by something vicious and deadly, not to mention clearly not human. She was so very sure that this would be the end of her short life of sixteen years. And then by some miracle, she was saved. Rated T for language and future references.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello folks! I'm Akorn and this is my first SPN fanfic ever. I'll try to make it different from all the others and hopefully you'll enjoy it :)**

**Title: Shirts and Cars and Other Things  
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**Pairing: Dean Winchester x OC (April Cleveland)  
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**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural nor any of its characters. I do, how ever, own this story as well as anything original by me, including characters, story line, etc.  
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**Chapter 1  
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April Cleveland came to know Dean Winchester in a situation very similar to many others: she was pressed into a corner of a deserted alleyway by something vicious and deadly, not to mention clearly not human. Her dear life was at stake and April was so very sure, as the thing opened its mouth revealing very long and vicious looking fangs, that this would be the end of her short but glorious life of sixteen years. She thought of everything she could be looking forward to, and cried desperate tears of how sorry she was for ending up as a bloody meal of some freaking monster. Well, she cried about that and then there was the pure, vibrant fear pumping through her veins and screaming in her ears.

The last comment that ran through her mind was that, _I'm going to be fucking scarred for life for this._ She was a good girl and almost never swore in her life; might as well do so now that she's staring right at the dead end.

The last thing April Cleveland could have seen coming was the point of a bloody stake erupting from the thing's heart. It shrieked and writhed and gasped its last breath before dramatically falling to the floor, dead. Before April knew it, she had been miraculously _saved_.

Still fucking scarred, but at least she was _fucking breathing_ and _fucking thinking _and was _fucking tasting_ the sweet nectar of life. It was the worst day of her life, but at least she'll live to see another.

Then April, still numb struck and on the verge of passing out, looked up from the monster's body, and saw the most fucking handsome man she had ever seen, who coincidentally just happened to be her knight in shining armor.

Scratch what she said before. This was the _best fucking _day of her life. And it turned out that it was, because that was the day Dean Winchester entered the absolutely normal life of April Cleveland and turned it inside-out, up-side-down, and round and round.

Despite all the shock she was in, April remembers Dean Winchester more clearly than she remembers the monster. For one thing, she definitely knew how to keep looking at the bright side of life.

She remembers that he had a black tee beneath a navy blue plaid shirt that day along with a pair of very old jeans, torn in one knee as well as the hinges. An exotic golden amulet hung at his chest. The leather jacket had been missing for an unknown reason, but over time April still got the fact that the smell of old leather was an inseparable part of the man. The sleeves of the shirt were roughly pushed up to his elbows, revealing the tense muscles of his forearm, while his hands were sprayed with monster blood. The crowfeet at the corners of his eyes that April had come to adore and love weren't quite showing yet (unless he grinned, which he did once, later). She doesn't remember anything about the freckles either, but maybe that was just because the alley was too dim to get a good look. He was only twenty years old then, so young and energetic compared to what he came to be. But his significant height and broad shoulders were already present, and so was his older-than-age look. He also had the same cocky look in his eyes (which were a brilliant dark green in the street light, specked with gold). Besides all the concern for April and the disgust at the monster, she could tell that he was pleased: pleased with his work, pleased that he had done well, pleased that he had managed to save yet another life.

April often wondered afterwards how she could have noticed so many things when the horrific scenes she had just experienced were still playing in her head. Her mind was completely blown out, but somehow, her subconscious had remained still as a mirror of water, reflecting in every little detail.

After that, April Cleveland received the same treatment identical to the many before her. The mysterious man that had just saved her told her she was safe now. He roughly checked if she was hurt. He briefly explained what the thing was. He even more briefly explained he hunted these monsters for a living after an inquiring look. At last, the man gave a very gruff , "Hey, you feeling alright?"

It took a second to progress the question through her brain. It took another second to progress a meaningful answer. It felt like she had turned into some freaking computer. A question was an input. Her answer would be an output. And that's all she could handle or else an error message would pop out and black smoke and sparks would jump out of her ears.

She gave one, quick, curt, nod.

The man shrugged a frown at the response, but didn't ask any further questions, and April thought that was probably him saying that it was an acceptable answer.

"And you?" she finally worked her tangled tongue to say.

The man raised his eyebrows at the question, an amused smirk emerging at the edge of his lips, and his still boyish feature started to show. "Why I can't be feeling better. Just rid the world of another son of a bitch, didn't I?"

"What's your name?" she asked.

"Rupert." He said.

"You're lying," April said quietly. If there was one thing all those hours of TV watching was good for, at least one of the shows taught her a man shouldn't be hesitated to say his name.

Another shrug. Another frown. Another smirk. A look that said "it won't hurt to tell the truth".

"Dean."

Another nod.

"April. Thank you for saving my life."

"Well that's what I do sweetheart." And April saw the small wrinkles for the first time.

Then Dean offered to take April home. April nodded, again only once, and took at step meaning to follow him. Next moment, her only view was the cracked tar road, wet with blood. It was only then did she notice her body was drenched with cold sweat, her legs shaking so bad she's amazed she had been remained standing all that time, and now they were going to dance right off her limbs any second.

When Dean reached for her, all April could think of was, _how embarrassing._ There was a strange buzzing in her ears, blocking out most of what must have been cooing works Dean said. The last thing she heard was, "Hey hey, it's gonna be alright. Hang on there for me." Next thing she knew, she was laying on a hospital bed, supposedly having been mugged, and the man who called the ambulance long gone.

A year later, the alleyway got reconstructed into a road and all that could have witnessed this small act of heroism and bravery were destroyed. Two years later, April packed her bags and hit the road, headed for a scholarship at the infamous UCLA, her future so full of hope that no one would connect her to a scary incident that jumped down straight from the movies.

But it didn't change the fact that at age sixteen, April Cleveland was saved by a still green Dean Winchester in a back alleyway. Like most people, she was beyond thankful to the man who she only knew by first name. Like most people, she resumed to a monster free life after the incident, and was at most times, happy and grateful.

But there's a secret, a hidden catch, because April Cleveland wasn't like most people after all.

Two days after she woke up, the nurse let slip an important event while she was out cold: she told April that she was found out on the ground with a navy blue plaid shirt wrapped around her.

At age sixteen, April Cleveland fell in love.

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**Well that's it for Chap. 1. Reviews are most welcome! Thanks for reading - Akorn**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! Thanks to Muse2488 for the kind review and all the follows! Keep 'em coming!**

**I forgot to mention last time that this should be considered as a partly AU story. It barely follows the original story line, only keeping the basic facts that Dean and Sam are hunters, and April is someone Dean had saved, probably on a solo hunt. Please message me or put it in your review if you have any questions or concerns about this.**

**Here's the next chapter. Without further ado, hope you enjoy!**

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**Chapter 2**

The next time April Cleveland saw Dean Winchester, change had taken place in almost every way you can think of. She was twenty six and in her second to last year of med school. Her hair was longer. Her curves had set in. She had long abandoned her nerdy glasses and lumpy sweaters while heels and skirts filled in their places. She looked people in the eyes when she spoke, her tone soft and polite. She smiled at almost everyone, from the wrinkly lady that fed the pigeons in the park to the stern old professor that had every one of her friends rewrite a paper at least once.

April Cleveland had become what most people would recognize as a sassy and charming woman. She volunteered at the local hospital to help children diagnosed with leukemia. She worked evening and weekend shifts as a secretary at a neighbouring clinic. She occasionally had fun at bars with her friends and classmates, but was never drunk enough to forget anything in the morning after. She accepted the fact that she was no genius, and studied her ass off. It paid off well, since although April was never at the top of her class, she had considerably well grades that made her dream of being a doctor possible.

But deep inside, April wasn't that much different from the terrified teenager she was on that night ten or so years ago. Her shyness may have disappeared on the surface, but sometimes she still felt tongue tied when approached by a complete stranger. She also kept to her "no swearing" rule ("stubborn" her friends called it), and always blushed in guilt at the thought of the crazy night she stepped her toe out of line. She believed as well, just like ten years ago, that she was no one special (which she was perfectly fine with). Just plain April Cleveland for you, thank you very much, which made the clearly "not plain" interlude seem more like a dream. For all she knew, that might be the only spark of her entire life, for surely nothing else could even come close to surpassing it.

And of course, April Cleveland was still in love with Dean. Truth be told, even April herself thought this naive girl crush was quite pitiful: the man probably doesn't even remember her now, let alone bother himself with her feelings; who knows how many people he had saved as a monster hunter, and who knows, among them, how many stupid girls had fallen head over heels for him just like her. There had been countless times when April just wanted to forget about the stupid man that stole her heart with one dashing grin and a stinking plaid shirt. She had wished to move on, to free herself from a resultless daydream, and had even bothered to go through two unsuccessful relationships for it.

But in the end, it showed that not many men could compare to your handsome sweet-sixteen lifesaver after all. And with everything that had changed, April was glad to have a constant in her life.

With all that being said, you could imagine how surprised April was when she came face to face with no other than Dean Winchester himself. After she had decided to just bury her affections, the man of her dreams decided to pop up and stir her life into another mess.

It was a Friday night in late October. Fall had finally started to set in, and the coolness that crept into the air after dawn was just enough to be chilling. April had finished her shift at the clinic and bussed over to Shakespeare's Head, the most popular bar near campus. She was supposed to meet her friends there at eight, and found herself ten minutes early as she stepped into the rowdy gathering place. It was full of laughter as always, and was lit up in a warm fuzzy orange light that April always appreciated. She hadn't bothered to change into anything special. Thinking about the hectic week med school had just offered, April was really just looking forward to a relaxing night with her friends where they can joke about the school, the professors, and their misty future as if they didn't give a crap about it.

April settled herself in a bar stool and ordered a light drink for the time being. The front doors opened and closed, letting in all kinds of people as they did: April spotted a few students from the Engineering Faculty in a corner, as well as some excited freshmen clearly still exploring the neighborhood; there were some older men too, seemingly working class, laughing and talking a few seats to her left, taking a night off; there were even some passing by motorcyclists, in grim jackets and bright tattoos, chuckling to their own private jokes. The Shakespeare's Head, already having the oddest name as a bar, often hosted an even odder mixture of people.

But even for The Shakespeare's Head, that particular autumn evening had been a special one. Although April doesn't know it yet, it appeared that Destiny had decided that it would be appropriate to take a chance, and add in two monster hunters into the mix for the night, just to see how things might turn out.

Ten past eight and her friends still haven't showed up. April stirred her drink out of boredom, keeping a mental note to be sure to at least appear mad at Sharon when she arrives, though she seriously doubted the possibility. It was no secret that Jack will be with her, as the two love birds seldom parted in their free time. Given that they were in two complete different faculties and spent most of their school hours at the two opposite ends of the campus, every second that wasn't seemed tenfold more precious. Then Dave would probably be waiting with Jack, since they were dorm mates and best buddies, and the fact that Jack was Dave's only ride to and from anywhere after the little tolling incident in downtown last week. April smiled to herself as she thought it might be fun to tease Dave too when they get here; after all, for someone whose dream is to become the best automobile designer of his age, losing his own baby is a sour joke you can never laugh at too many times.

April was smiling to herself when the door swung open for another time. If she had looked in the direction, this is what she would have seen:

Two men stepped in, with every inch of them crying out loud in thorough exhaustion. They had been talking the moment before, a glimpse of an amused grin still visible on one's lips. He was a firm man, strong and reliable. The first thing you would notice about him was the rather worn out leather jacket; in fact, everything he had on, he probably had owned for some time. There was a slightly battered look to him that stretched from the tip of his slightly spiky dirty blond hair to the toes of his black boots. It was a look that said he had seen more rain and shine than his fair share. But in a shift of light, all that weariness was hidden and his eyes twinkled and the amused grin merged into a playful smirk as he briefly glanced around the room, gaze slightly lingering on a few women. At this, the other man gave a disgruntled sigh and walked off, to which the first expressed a slightly torn expression before following him, palms out and shrugging, exclaiming an innocently disguised, "Oh come on!" Excuse the lack of better language, but the second man was whom April would have categorized as "_freakishly tall_". He was probably younger too, with soft brown hair that slopped all over the place. His eyes had a tender look in them while his brows furrowed in the slightest matter, giving him the look of a kid who had worries beyond his age. He wore a hoodie that was a deep shade of red-brown and cuddled snugly to his long, lanky body. If April had turned, he would have reminded April one of the puppies her grandpa once had when she was little; he kept following April around, nudging her here and there into a path he sought safe, and barked whenever she was running too far away from the house. Both men were rather good looking, despite their road ridden looks, and even before they had completely sat down at a table in a relatively quiet corner, a waitress with slick red lipstick and an eye capturing oval face was already on their heels, asking about their needs.

But all of this was remained oblivious to April as she continued to sip her drink and eyed the clock. A few minutes later, Sharon Pacey arrived at last along with Jack Abram and Dave Kyles, a wide apologetic smile on her face as she took April into a tight embrace that left her wondering how in the world could she have ever be mad at her best friend.

It was until then, when the four of them had settled into a table, did April Cleveland finally look up and caught a glance of the two men that came in earlier.

She saw the back of a shaggy head, and a pair of hazel specked green eyes. It only lasted a second, for another boisterous crowd had entered and quickly blocked the view. But the image had already set in: there was a moment of familiarity, then a deep sense of haunting caught her as she gave a shuddering breath of realization.

"Hey? You cold?" Sharon's voice sounded beside her.

April barely caught her words between the suddenly booming beats of her own heart. There was nothing to see anymore, but she still had to forcingly tear herself out of the stare, meeting with Sharon's undecided expression.

"Nope. Just thought I saw someone I knew. You know, light tricks," she said with a silly smile and gestured at the bulbs above them before grabbing a menu and shifting her focus to another matter. "Come on, let's order something. I'm starving."

But deep inside, between the gurgles of her empty stomach and her surprisingly not so half-hearted laugh in response of Jack's latest joke, April wondered in both daze and panic, why the heck had she never, ever, given a thought about what she should do if she met Dean for a second time.


End file.
